Container having integral tear strip



Dec. 16, 1952 F. F. osMERs CONTAINER HAVING INTEGRAL TEAR STRIP FiledOct. 4 1951 INVENTOR )Wan/2 297052729275 Y Wffm Patented Dec. 16, 1952UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CONTAINER HAVING INTEGRAL TEAR, STRIP FrankF. Osmers, Maywood, N. J.

Application October 4, 1951, Serial No. 249,775

1 Claim.

This invention relates to cans or containers, such as the so-calledvacuum-packed cans which are opened by the removal of a tearing stripformed in the cylindrical wall thereof.

Sheet metal containers made of tin plate and like material embodying anintegral tearing strip in the cylindrical wall of the container are wellknown. As heretofore constructed upon winding the tearing strip in aslotted key provided for that purpose, the tearing strip tends to workofi the end of the key in the form of a spiral as it is wound on to thekey, rather than form a compact cylinder as intended. This frequentlytakes place even though the user exercises care to hold the key againstlongitudinal movement relative to the can. Such undesired working off ofthe tearing strip from the key in the form of a spiral has a number ofobjections among which may be mentioned:

l. The lateral edges of the tearing strip are rough and sharp and mayresult in accidental injury and damage.

2. Complete severance of the tearing strip from the can is rendered morediicult.

t is among the objects of this invention to provide a container madewith a tearing strip so designed that the tearing strip is caused toWind in desired cylindrical form on the key minimizing, if notcompletely eliminating, any possibility of the tearing strip riding offthe end of the key to form an undesired spiral strip.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be apparent from thefollowing detailed description thereof.

In the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specication andshowing, for purposes of exemplication a preferred form of thisinvention without limiting the claimed invention to such illustrativeinstance,

Figure 1 is a fragmentary perspective View showing the top portion of avacuum-packed can embodying this invention; this figure shows thetearing strip partially removed from the can and wound on the key in theact of effecting opening of the can;

Figure 2 is a vertical section taken in the plane passing through line2-2 of Figure 1; and

Figure 3 is a vertical section taken in the plane passing through line3-3 of Figure 1.

In the drawing I indicates a vacuum-packed can of sheet metal, such astin plate, comprising a tubular body II, top member I2 and bottom member(not shown) in the interests of permitting disclosure of the top portionof the can, where the invention resides, on a larger scale than wouldotherwise be possible. Both the bottom member and the top member I2 maybe secured to the tubular or cylindrical body I I in any conventionalmanner. As shown in the drawing, the top I2 is secured to the tubularbody II by a joint I3 formed by interfolding the marginal edges of thetop about the marginal edge of the tubular body II. The side edges ofthe body II may be joined in a lock and lap side seam as conventional.

Disposed at the upper end of can I5 is an internal collar band I4, thelower and upper portion of which t snugly in place against the insidesurface of the tubular body I I. The upper edge l5 of collar I4terminates in an inwardly bent edge curl I6. If desired, edge I6 may bespaced from the inside of top I2 a distance equal to the width oftearing strip Il, although it need not be so spaced. When so spaced uponremoval of tear strip Il, when the can is closed the top I2 of the coverthus formed rests on edge I6 and lower edge I8 of the cover extends to apoint indicated by the reference character I9. Lower edge 20 of collarIB is secured by an outwardly extending bead 2I formed in the tubularbody II and in the lower edge portion of collar I4. Thus the lower edge2l) of collar I4 is locked to the tubular body I I near the upper edgethereof.

The intermediate portion of collar I4 is formed with acontainer-encircling channel or circular depression 2,2 of a heightslightly greater than the width of tearing strip I'I and a depthapproximately equal to the radius of the circle of the cylinder formedby completely winding the tearing strip in the desired manner on the key25. For tin plate cans having a 5" outside diameter and a 31/2" heightof the type now commonly used in the vacuum packing of coiee in onepound quantities employing a tearing strip of from Mg" to 1/4 wide, thedepth of circular depression 22 may be from 1/8" to 1/2, preferablyabout 1/4. The circular channel or depression 22 in the collar I4 shouldbe so dimensioned that it accommodates successive convolutions of thetearing strip as Wound on key 25 and the key moves about the outerperiphery of the can. In this way riding off of the tearing strip fromthe end of the key is minimized, if not completely prevented. Thisresult will be achieved even thoughthe depth of the circular depression22 is not suicient to accommodate the last one or two convolutions ofthe tearing strip, and it will be understood that this inventionincludes constructions in which the circular depression 22 is of a depthto accomodate all but the last few convolutions of the tearing stripI'I.

Tearing strip I1, as best shown in Figure 2, is disposed directlyopposite circular depression 22 and is dened and set oi in the tubularbody I I by a pair of parallel score lines 23, 24 formed in the tubularbody I I and along which the tubular body is torn when the tearing stripis removed by the opening key 25. These score lines 23 and 24 are soformedthat the tear strip can readily be removed from the tubular bodyII by a pulling motion. As indicated in Figure 2, they extendsubstantially completely through the thickness of the tubular body II soweakening this body in the portion thereof where the score lines areformed that the tear stripv can readily be removed once the free end ofthe tearA strip is engaged and pulled upwardly and Ywoundv onv the keyso that subsequent turning movement of the key exerts a pulling actionon the tear strip, as shown in Figure 1. The free end of the tear stripis formed with a tongue which as conventional extendsbeyond the bodyside seam and is adapted to beengaged by the opening key 25 for openingthe container by tearing the tear strip 'out ofthe tubular body II, asclearly shown in Figure 1.

In this invention when the tongue ofthe tear strip is inserted inthe-opening ofthe key 25 and the key wound countl-zrclockwise,v the tearstrip thereon exerted by the key winding the strip on the key. Assuccessive convolutions are wound on thekey thevertical leg o f the keyremains in substantially the same relative position to the can and isnot displaced laterally relative Vthereto by the `successive-convolutions forcing the key Vaway from the side wall of thel can, asin prior constructions.

v In this invention successive convolutions of the tear strip collectingon -the key are accommodated by the circular depression 22 so thatsubstantially no force is exerted on the key which tends to move itlaterally relative to the can. Furthermore, the top and bottom walls ofthe circular depression 22 tend to guide the tear strip to cause it towind on the key to form a compact cylinder as shown on Figure 1.

Since different embodiments of the invention could be made withoutdeparting from the scope of this invention, it is'intended that allmatter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanyingdrawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limitingsense.

What is claimed is:

A cylindrical container comprising a tubular body and top and bottommembers sealing said tubular body, a tearing strip in said tubular bodyVnear 'the top thereof and adapted to be engaged by a key and woundthereon for removal of the tearing strip, an internal cylindrical collarhaving its lower edge secured to said tubular body below the lower edgeof said tearing strip, and an date successive convolutions of saidtearing strip when wound upon said key in the removal of said tearingstrip from the tubular body toeffect Y opening of said container.

` FRANK F. OSMERS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name VDate 2,428,394 Socke Oct. 7, 19472,536,044 Erb "Jan. 2, 1951

